


The Duet Mix

by spinningthreads



Category: K.O.3an Guo, The X Family
Genre: Gen, I just need Ah Xiang's life in the Iron Dimension okay, Multi, Post-Canon, Xiu's life is hard
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-08
Updated: 2019-01-08
Packaged: 2019-10-06 22:44:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,401
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17354012
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spinningthreads/pseuds/spinningthreads
Summary: In which two tricksters meet and Xiu is terrified of their endgame.





	The Duet Mix

**Author's Note:**

> This fic brought to you by the duet version of Gou Ai. While I love all 3 versions of this song, the implications of [the duet](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVsm2tSH-X0) just makes me want Ah Xiang and A Chord being friends and everyone else being terrifed of what they could do as terrible, terrifying prankster combi.

In retrospect, Xiu thought, it had beeen a mistake to let his guard down. The sight of Ah Xiang and A Chord engaged in conversation, both of them wearing expressions that indicated they were _planning something_ , had been terrifying. Whoever had introduced the pair must have been out of their mind, bringing two tricksters together like that. Oh, right, that had been him. He only had himself to blame for this, after all. What had he been thinking to make a mistake like that? 

Oh, they'd been sneaky, he'd give them that. That conversation had been early in the gathering and he'd spent most of the evening just _waiting_ for whatever scheme the pair had hatched to come to fruition, but nothing had happened. Nothing, not one single thing to justify the lingering apprehension of Ah Xiang and A Chord becoming friends and cooking up plans together. And so, as the evening passed into night and the general enjoyment of spending time with friends he hadn't seen in so long eased the ache of his Silver Dimension brothers' absence, an impromptu jam session started up; not surprising, given the number of musicians here. 

Xia Tian had bowed out of performing, at least for now, content to listen and enjoy as part of the audience, with Han held snugly in his arms. No doubt the pair of them would take over later with their drums and guitar and it would be his turn to relax and listen to good friends enjoying themselves and entertaining everyone else at the same time. A Chord had stepped back into the role of vocalist in Dong Cheng Wei and something eased inside of Xiu at the familiarity. Xia Tian fit well with Dong Cheng Wei, both as a vocalist and on the guitar, but there was something about having their original line-up back together, acting solely as a band and not as city guardians, playing simply because they _wanted_ to rather than for channeling energy in battle, that soothed something in his soul. 

There was still friction between himself and the rest of Dong Cheng Wei over his attachment to the Silver Dimension and its people: his sworn brothers Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, the other brothers he'd collected along the way in Zhao Yun, Ma Chao, Huang Zhong. Ah Xiang, before her true Iron Dimension origins were revealed to everyone, including herself, and Dong Cheng Wei still had mixed feelings about her, given how he'd struggled to reconcile his duty and the agony and desperation he'd felt at the thought of leaving her behind forever. They couldn't understand why it was so different from his friendships in the Gold Dimension - Wang Da Dong, Ding Xiao Yu and Wang Ya Se - or how he could prioritise his Silver Dimension brothers over them, given how much they'd been through together. Even Xiu himself couldn't explain why it was different, just that it _was_ , and that vagueness in itself wasn't helping to heal the wounds either.

A Chord, however, had been gone from Dong Cheng Wei for a while by that point, leading Bei Cheng Wei after the murder of their previous leader and so he hadn't felt that confusion and rejection, didn't have the same pain that needed to be worked through so that they could still function effectively in their role as guardians, and this Xiu was grateful for. It was a relief to have at least one relationship in the Iron Dimension that was simple and uncomplicated and not laced with tension and pain. And so he let A Chord's vocals lull him into security, slipping solely into a world of music and forgetting to be concerned over what he and Ah Xiang had been cooking up as they played songs both from their own discography and well-loved songs from other sources. 

Finally they transitioned into the opening of Enough Love, a silent indicator that they were winding down their set and it was time for someone else to take over, when the scheme hit him like an energy blast to the face. Muscle memory was his saviour, enabling him to keep playing as his head snapped up when the vocals started in earnest, because it wasn't A Chord's voice but Ah Xiang's that rang out into the room. He stared, brain trying to process what the fuck was happening, his fingers moving over the strings of his guitar almost of their own accord as Ah Xiang's voice washed over him. She winked and gave him a sweet smile that in no way hid how amused she was with him. As she turned away to focus on her singing Xiu's gaze switched to A Chord, only to find him giving him a manic, shit-eating grin and he knew that under other circumstances A Chord would be howling with laughter at him, that he probably _would_ be later on when they were finished. At least, he would if he wasn't too busy making out with Jie, if the way they were leaning against each other and smirking as they played was any indication. A Chord, however, he knew how to deal with and he narrowed his eyes in a silent pledge of vengeance for springing this on him.

A Chord just shrugged, not fazed in the slightest and that's when Xiu's evening got _worse_ , because this wasn't just having Ah Xiang on the vocals for a song that meant so much to them, oh no. No, they had to make him suffer, apparently, as A Chord joined in for the chorus, turning the song into a duet and Xiu had not needed that, not at all. Somehow it made the song even more heartbreaking than it had been when A Chord had first written it, his pain spilling out in lyrical form. Ah Xiang stepped back as the second verse started, leaving it for its original singer and Xiu took a moment to catch his breath and pin her with a look, silently demanding _how could you do this to me?_ She just smirked and he could all but hear her whisper _BeiBei, how could I not?_ The smirk on her face said she was too cute for him to be irritated with her and that was somehow more irritating than anything else, because it was true, damn it. All she had to do was give him that winsome smile and he caved like an avalanche, a fact she was only too willing to exploit when she deemed it necessary.

Somehow he made it through the rest of the song, ignoring the grins on the rest of the band's face at his expense even as he knew their amusement only meant good things for them as a group and as friends. That wouldn't stop him planning his revenge at this heartless ambush, though and he knew that they knew that too. His vengeance would be terrible and would crush them when they least expected it, when they thought that maybe he'd forgotten.

"BeiBei," Ah Xiang whispered, linking their arms together as they walked off the improvised stage. "Don't be mad at them, okay? This was my idea."

He raised an eyebrow at her, not doubting that in the least. But. "If you think A Chord didn't jump at the chance you really need to get to know him better." Then his ears caught up with the words and he slapped a hand over his face in horror at his own suggestion. "On second thought, please _don't_ get to know him better." The thought of the chaos the two of them could wreak together was terrible.

She laughed and patted his arm gently. "I like him," she announced. "I think we'll get along great."

That was what Xiu was afraid of. Still, as always being in Ah Xiang's presence was soothing and he rested his head against hers for a moment. "I'm not actually mad," he murmured as Han took her seat at the drums and Xia Tian tuned up his guitar in the background, Bing Xin twirling the microphone between her hands as she waited for them. "Just don't tell them that. I want them to sweat a little."

She mimed zipping her lips and warmth bloomed in his chest with how much he loved this beautiful, wonderful, exasperating woman. "Come on," she said, tugging him forward. "Let's get a good seat to watch the others."

**Author's Note:**

> Yeah, I mention Bing Xin at the end. Since I am not here for her fridging, she gets to live and Han gets to keep her sister, so I guess that makes this kind of an au. Kinda?


End file.
